Encryption is used to provide secure communications between entities over communication networks. In the case of communications involving a group of participants, cryptographic keys may be distributed to the group members and employed to encrypt messages or content sent over the network during a communication session. To facilitate secure group communication, a group can be created on a key server that authenticates group members and generates and supplies keys to the members. A group keying protocol, such as the Group Domain of Interpretation (GDOI) protocol, can be used for interactions between the key server and group members.
Currently, a static group created on a key server persists indefinitely or until the group is explicitly cleared on the key server through configuration. The GDOI protocol commonly used for group keying is designed primarily for implementation of such static groups, which are not deleted or terminated at a certain point in time or after a given period of time.